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Pluto Demoted

Here’s an interesting news from CNN.

After much debate at conference in Prague, astronomers have declared that Pluto is no longer a planet, cutting down the “planets” of the solar system from nine to eight. From now on, it will fall under the “dwarf planet” category.

Much-maligned Pluto doesn’t make the grade under the new rules for a planet: “a celestial body that is in orbit around the sun, has sufficient mass for its self-gravity to overcome rigid body forces so that it assumes a … nearly round shape, and has cleared the neighborhood around its orbit.”

Pluto is automatically disqualified because its oblong orbit overlaps with Neptune’s. [CNN]

Nice. This is man trying to play god. We don’t get to create planets, but at least we get to label, promote, and demote them.